Tag: 1962

• Illustrated fashion packaging

  Barbie’s early ensembles were sold in boxes with cellophane fronts that neatly displayed the contents, along with black-and-white illustrated backs featuring a bit of snappy text. Only for a short while did Barbie appear alone on any packages; once Midge was introduced, even the earlier fashions still in production came in updated packaging that included…

  sheathsensation

  November 8, 2025

  illustration

  1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, becky, francie, midge, stacey, vintage barbie

• Dell Comics (1962-1963)

  From May of 1962 to August of ’63, Dell Comics released a 5-issue run of “Barbie and Ken” comic books. Contemporaneous with the Random House chapter books, the comics introduce a different vision of Barbie. Whereas the chapter books’ protagonist was a high school student, the comics’ Barbie is an adult with numerous careers: flight…

  sheathsensation

  February 3, 2024

  illustration

  1962, 1963, after five, dell comics, ken, sheath sensation, silken flame, vintage barbie

• Basic and dressed doll boxes

  Basic Barbie boxes The first boxes in which Barbies were sold came decorated with illustrations that were simultaneously more detailed and softer in style than the fashion booklets of the time; where the booklet sketches employed heavy lines, the illustrations on the first dolls’ packaging were mostly without lines, except where needed, as in their…

  sheathsensation

  November 17, 2023

  illustration

  1961, 1962, 1963, after five, enchanted evening, ken, midge, red flare, silken flame, vintage barbie

• Barbie’s Keys to Fame

  Illustrations from the Keys to Fame game. Source for all images in this post: statestpac2011 on eBay. A funny little mid-Sixties board game, Barbie’s Keys to Fame illustrates a number of possible futures for the one-time Teen-Aged Fashion Model, each emblematic of a “key” to fame: the stamina of the Ballerina, the style of the…

  sheathsensation

  October 14, 2023

  illustration

  1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, after five, barbie keys to fame game, vintage barbie

• Visions of Solo in the Spotlight

  sheathsensation

  October 4, 2023

  illustration, Musings

  1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, booklets, carrying cases, paper dolls, vintage barbie

• Fashion Booklets

  The first, foremost, and most famous source of vintage Barbie illustrations is, of course, the fashion booklet. When we assess the drawings on items like carrying cases, doll packaging, and sewing patterns, our evaluations often center on similarities to and differences from the booklet versions. Within the booklets, there are hundreds of hand-drawn illustrations to…

  sheathsensation

  September 14, 2023

  illustration

  1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, after five, booklets, red flare, sheath sensation, skipper, vintage barbie

• Random House Books (1962-1965)

  Starting in 1962, Random House released a series of books set in the Barbieverse, and naturally, those books were illustrated. By themselves, the books’ covers, like those above, form a nice collection of illustrations; however, the interiors have even more to offer, and we’ll detail a few favorites here. Almost unique within the annals of…

  sheathsensation

  August 20, 2023

  illustration

  1962, 1964, 1965, after five, silken flame, vintage barbie

• Whitman Coloring Books (1962-1965)

  Whitman’s coloring books are the Midge to their own paper dolls’ Barbie: a little less popular, a little less pretty, but still they hold a special place in our hearts. You can recognize the cover art, above, from paper dolls, fashion booklets and other media; the interior pages, however, are almost totally unique. One thing…

  sheathsensation

  July 15, 2023

  built environment, illustration

  1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, after five, midge, skipper, whitman, whitman coloring books

• Vintage Sewing Patterns

  In 1961 Barbie’s fashion horizons expanded in the form of Advance sewing patterns, whose illustrations fit the style of the era’s fashion booklets. Unlike the carrying case illustrations, they don’t seem to be traced; but the art styles are, to say the least, in harmony. Here are examples of early fashion booklet sketches that resonate…

  sheathsensation

  March 31, 2023

  illustration

  1961, 1962, 1963, francie, midge, red flare, sheath sensation, skipper

• Early furniture: Mattel Modern and Susy Goose

  Mattel Modern (1958) In 1958, Mattel debuted its Mattel Modern line of stylish, wooden doll furniture, and a year later Barbie was introduced to make use of it. Wait, what? Okay, that’s not quite how it happened. Mattel Modern, a line of sleek, midcentury-styled, real wood furniture, was released before Barbie, but it was meant…

  sheathsensation

  February 21, 2023

  built environment

  1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, clones, go-together rooms, mattel modern, susy goose, vintage barbie